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The Yurok people who occupied the region before European settlement carried out regular burnings of redwood forests to bolster tanoak populations from which they harvested acorns, maintain forest openings, and boost populations of useful plant species such as those for medicine or basketmaking.

Extensive logging began in the early nineteenth century. Redwoods were cut, stripped of their bark, and transported to mills or waterways by oxen or horse. Loggers burned the stripped bark with the tree limbs and shrubs they used to cushion falling trees. These repeated burns favored the later growth of redwoods as redwood seedlings sprout readily burned areas.

The introduction of the steam engine created second-growth forests which selected against redwoods. Steam engines were used to drag logs along long skid trails, disturbing large amounts of soil. The accumulated bark, limbs, and shrubs previously burned in the open were now used to power the engines. This combination of disturbed soil and less frequent burning favored the growth of Douglas fir, grand fir, and western hemlock.

After World War II, two methods of harvest emerged. Advancements in trucks and tractors allowed loggers to more quickly and easily cut and remove trees, giving rise to clear-cutting. This approach was encouraged by tax law which taxed all standing timber unless 70% of trees in the area were harvested. A second approach known as selection logging involved the selection of individual trees for harvest.